The Zeifmans Family Business Handbook: Understanding the 6 facets of family business success
Family businesses are the backbone of the Canadian economy, producing 90% of the jobs created by small and mid-sized companies, and accounting for 35% of the country’s real GDP[1]. At Zeifmans, we understand the importance of family-run businesses from both a financial and a personal perspective. Not only have we worked with countless family businesses for more than 60 years, but we’re also a family business ourselves, now in our second and third generation.
In many ways, family businesses are not unlike any other type of business. However, family businesses do share a number of unique qualities that contribute both to their strengths, and their weaknesses. While it is often stated that statistically only 30% of family businesses survive into the third generation, those that do survive tend to outperform their peers. Why is that?
There’s something about the unique dynamic of family – a double edged sword that has the potential for both exponential success and dramatic undoing. The key challenge lies in distinguishing the processes, functions, and financial activities that will assist a family in organizing and executing strategically over the long term.
In this handbook, our Zeifmans Family Business experts explore the following to gain a better understanding of the role they play in achieving the end goal of sustainable success:
- Family Dynamics
- Ownership Structure
- Business Governance
- Long-Term Strategy
- Wealth Management
- Succession Planning
Supplemental insights
5 essential qualities to seek in a trusted advisor
The future of Family Business in Canada
[1] Family Enterprise Xchange Foundation, “Family enterprise matters”, https://family-enterprisexchange.com/res/pub/docs/ResearchReports/FEX_2019_Report_Family_Enterprise_Matters.pdf